Operational tests of a small-sized farm multi-purpose vehicle

The paper deals with the issue of expanding the scope of application of small-sized farm multi-purpose vehicles in the production process. The authors focus on the risks associated with the use of this type of machines. The authors prove that application of small-sized farm multi- purpose vehicles is feasible in agricultural production. To increase the interest of agricultural producers in small-sized farm vehicles it is necessary to develop a system of reliable assessment and verification of their actual consumer properties. For this purpose, the authors have studied the existing normative and technical documentation related to the functioning of this type of machines, varieties of small-sized vehicles and electrically driven trackless vehicles. Based on the available documents, they arranged a list of necessary tests to fully evaluate the main consumer properties. The test set consisted of nine procedures, including both static and dynamic tests. The paper provides data on the developed and manufactured experimental sample of electric cargo tricycle used on farms. The tricycle served as an example for the cycle of tests carried out according to the developed list. The paper summarizes the results obtained. Particular attention is paid to longitudinal and lateral sliding and tipping stability tests, center of mass position and traction tests, as well as dynamic tests to determine speed and braking performance, the mileage on a single battery charge, and vibration loading when operating under various road and climatic conditions.